I established a meditation studio 12 months ago. The growth has been organic and we did $100k. How would you invest to double memberships in 6 months?

Hi, I'm Rodger Stephens, and I'm a business performance expert, growing businesses for the last 25+ years. Here's a few suggestions to help your business to grow...the method is simple, but unchangeable...

1) Find out what $$ you can allocate to bringing in new members. Having $100k in revenues is great, but your income statement/cash flow statement probably tells you the cash available for marketing is actually less.

2) Using the $$ you've allocated, find out what marketing methods and means are available to you. This is a situation where the dollars drive what marketing options you have available, so be sure to determine your budget first.

3) Methods of marketing may be:
A) Small $$
-A client referral program - flush out the details for how to ask your clients to bring in people they know. Offer them something to make it attractive for them. It doesn't need to be expensive. Perhaps a seat in a class/meeting or two. Other offerings of thanks may be attractive also.
- Online advertising or pay-per-click (PPC) can have big results. Budgets are set by you, so you can control your costs. Google Adwords/PPC is king here.
- Hold an open house and promote your business to new/interested people. When they arrive, be sure to collect contact information so you can market to them later. Attract attendees by using the client referral program, online ads or pay-per-click.

B) Medium $$ - Join your local chamber of commerce. They often allow members free or reduced price advertising through their website and events. A few hundred dollars per year is usual for costs here. Other of their offerings will allow you to spend more $$ to put your company in the spotlight at events or as an annual sponsor. This can be anywhere from a few hundred dollars to many thousands.

C) Big $$ - TV advertising could be successful for you because all people are potential meditation practicers. This can be an expensive proposition, but the exposure could be very large, especially if you are broadcasting in a major metropolitan area. Costs involve producing a commercial and paying for advertising airtime. There are companies that specialize in packaging commercials and acquiring airtime for you. Look for small to medium sized marketing firms that include these kinds of services. Your commercial could also be offered through online video means for no airtime costs. For online video, Google/Youtube is king.

Other means and methods are available to you, however, I'm leaving many off the list as they may be ruled out for your particular use.

Be sure to set goals by the number of members you need. When you hit your goal for new members, think about resetting your goal to get more if that's still an option given your capacity.

Best of Luck to You,
Rodger Stephens, CPA, CGMA

With a local business, like a meditation studio that's been organically, it's a matter of identifying what has been the key driver to your organic growth. Do you survey (formally or informally) all your new clients and ask them how they heard about you? Is it word of mouth/referrals? Online? I always advise to first zero in to what's been helping you grow already and try to put more efforts into driving that. I'd love to dig into this more with you.